Avalokitesvara is the Bodhisattva of compassion. The name for Avalokitesvara in China is Guanyin, where she’s presented in female form. This is because, in the Lotus Sutra, Guanyin will appear in whatever form necessary, whether male or female, to lead beings out of suffering.

At the lowest level of recitation practice, one recites the name of Guanyin to receive material blessings, “Namo Guanshiyin Pusa.” As your Bodhisattva path advances, Guanyin will become an inspiration for your own life, rather than a bestower of material gifts, as in the popular level.

At the highest level of recitation practice, one chants “Namo Guanshiyin Pusa” to awaken the Bodhisattva within, to gain the strength and fearlessness for one’s own Bodhisattva path. As it says in the Lotus Sutra, Avalokitesvara is the “bestower of fearlessness.”

The Lotus Sutra also promises that our inner demons of lust, greed, anger, and ignorance can be subdued through reciting the name of Avalokitesvara.

Skillful means is one of the Lotus Sutra's most important concepts, and it's beautifully exemplified in the Avalokitesvara's Universal Dharma Doors chapter of the Lotus Sutra.

The promises of worldly blessing are a upaya or skillful device for inducing us to recite the name of Avalokitesvara and contemplate on her loving-kindness and compassion, so that we may ultimately manifest these qualities in our own lives. It was never really about material blessings in the first place.

Skillful means is one of the Lotus Sutra’s most important concepts, and it’s beautifully exemplified in the Avalokitesvara’s Universal Door chapter of the Lotus Sutra.

The promises of worldly blessings are a upaya or skillful device for inducing us to recite the name of Avalokitesvara and contemplate on her loving-kindness and compassion, so that we may ultimately manifest these qualities in our own lives. It was never really about material blessings in the first place.

Everyone must find the form of meditation that’s right for them, and for me, it’s mantra recitation. I find it very difficult to simply sit and try to think of nothing. It’s much easier to be focused on an object of meditation. What matters is the result, not the form. If it results in our inner demons of lust, greed, anger, and ignorance being subdued, that’s all that matters.

The promises of worldly blessing are a upaya or skillful device for inducing us to recite the name of Avalokitesvara and contemplate on her loving-kindness and compassion, so that we may ultimately manifest these qualities in our own lives. It was never really about material blessings in the first place.

Why not teach the truth to people that there is no divine god that will confer special blessings on them? Why not tell them the truth that no god will be pleased by recitation of his/her name? Do you think that people are unable to understand or accept such truth in modern age? Why indulge in promoting wrong view that recitation of a god gives material blessings?

At the highest level of recitation practice, one chants “Namo Guanshiyin Pusa” to awaken the Bodhisattva within, to gain the strength and fearlessness for one’s own Bodhisattva path. As it says in the Lotus Sutra, Avalokitesvara is the “bestower of fearlessness.”

The Lotus Sutra also promises that our inner demons of lust, greed, anger, and ignorance can be subdued through reciting the name of Avalokitesvara.

Fearlessness comes from understanding of concepts such as 'anataa'. Greed, lust, anger can be subdued by gaining knowledge, by understanding concepts such as 'emptiness' and 'impermanence'. Anger can be subdued by daily practice of loving kindness meditation. It is utterly misguiding to promote the idea that 'reciting xyz's name will lead to fearlessness and subdue anger greed' etc.

For example, to learn kung fu: do you advise worshiping a kung fu master/god and reciting his/her name continuously? Or do you advise studying and practicing it?

Why then do you advise reciting name of a god to gain fearlessness and subdue lust, greed, anger?

Let us stop from promoting wrong views and practices. Let us insist on learning and practice. Learning and Practice. Not recitation of name of a divine being.

The promises of worldly blessing are a upaya or skillful device for inducing us to recite the name of Avalokitesvara and contemplate on her loving-kindness and compassion, so that we may ultimately manifest these qualities in our own lives. It was never really about material blessings in the first place.

Why not teach the truth to people that there is no divine god that will confer special blessings on them? Why not tell them the truth that no god will be pleased by recitation of his/her name? Do you think that people are unable to understand or accept such truth in modern age? Why indulge in promoting wrong view that recitation of a god gives material blessings?

At the highest level of recitation practice, one chants “Namo Guanshiyin Pusa” to awaken the Bodhisattva within, to gain the strength and fearlessness for one’s own Bodhisattva path. As it says in the Lotus Sutra, Avalokitesvara is the “bestower of fearlessness.”

The Lotus Sutra also promises that our inner demons of lust, greed, anger, and ignorance can be subdued through reciting the name of Avalokitesvara.

Fearlessness comes from understanding of concepts such as 'anataa'. Greed, lust, anger can be subdued by gaining knowledge, by understanding concepts such as 'emptiness' and 'impermanence'. Anger can be subdued by daily practice of loving kindness meditation. It is utterly misguiding to promote the idea that 'reciting xyz's name will lead to fearlessness and subdue anger greed' etc.

For example, to learn kung fu: do you advise worshiping a kung fu master/god and reciting his/her name continuously? Or do you advise studying and practicing it?

Why then do you advise reciting name of a god to gain fearlessness and subdue lust, greed, anger?

Let us stop from promoting wrong views and practices. Let us insist on learning and practice. Learning and Practice. Not recitation of name of a divine being.

Why do you care to persuade others to live in your reality, Rahul?

This is a buddhist forum, there are countless buddhist traditions and some of them have worship of deities.

If you appeal to truth then you also have to accept the truth is that there are people that derive benefit from deity worship. Considering how the figure of the buddha is regarded in nearly all buddhist traditions nearly all buddhist traditions practice a kind of deity worship.

"One who is aroused to practice is one of conviction (not doubting), not without conviction (doubting). One aroused to practice is one with persistence aroused, not lazy. One aroused to practice is one of established mindfulness, not muddled mindfulness. One aroused to practice is centered in concentration, not uncentered. One aroused to practice is discerning, not undiscerning. ...

"Furthermore, you should recollect the devas: 'There are the Devas of the Four Great Kings, the Devas of the Thirty-three, the Devas of the Hours, the Contented Devas, the devas who delight in creation, the devas who have power over the creations of others, the devas of Brahma's retinue, the devas beyond them. Whatever conviction they were endowed with that — when falling away from this life — they re-arose there, the same sort of conviction is present in me as well. Whatever virtue they were endowed with that — when falling away from this life — they re-arose there, the same sort of virtue is present in me as well. Whatever learning they were endowed with that — when falling away from this life — they re-arose there, the same sort of learning is present in me as well. Whatever generosity they were endowed with that — when falling away from this life — they re-arose there, the same sort of generosity is present in me as well. Whatever discernment they were endowed with that — when falling away from this life — they re-arose there, the same sort of discernment is present in me as well.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting the conviction, virtue, learning, generosity, and discernment found both in himself and the devas, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on the [qualities of the] devas. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.

May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.May they all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.May they never be deprived of true happiness devoid of any suffering.May they abide in great impartiality, free from attachment to loved ones and aversion to others.

It's worthy to "either accepting, nor rejecting, holding against the Dhamma, the Vinaya". As for Sujato, since his tendenc is gain and making housholders a favour, what ever might developed is for no use in regard of liberation, simply a con artist, scammer, scam artist, after world gain and politic, using the "poor" for his purpose.

So Sujatonusati might maybe not be really useful, althought many have the same virtue and generosity, learning and discernment... just for those who might be helped, with the problem of thinking "Robin Hood" would be ever a deity and in regard of "Mayanusati" and it's binding effects.

His undertaking, which seems noble at the first glimps, in bringing all together, is by lowering the Dhamma to A-Dhamma and not lifting A-Dhamma possible to the good Dhamma. That is of no use for anyone.

So here and there, all he actually does is to divide, rather to say, that fits in its purpose, in it's ways, to Dhamma Vinaya. Picking out what is good and contuctive. Why is that? Because he is an outsider, has not penetrated the Dhamma an simply uses it for his livelihood and gain, for low politic.

Then the Blessed One said: "In this fashion, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might speak: 'Face to face with the Blessed One, brethren, I have heard and learned thus: This is the Dhamma and the Discipline, the Master's Dispensation'; or: 'In an abode of such and such a name lives a community with elders and a chief. Face to face with that community, I have heard and learned thus: This is the Dhamma and the Discipline, the Master's Dispensation'; or: 'In an abode of such and such a name live several bhikkhus who are elders, who are learned, who have accomplished their course, who are preservers of the Dhamma, the Discipline, and the Summaries. Face to face with those elders, I have heard and learned thus: This is the Dhamma and the Discipline, the Master's Dispensation'; or: 'In an abode of such and such a name lives a single bhikkhu who is an elder, who is learned, who has accomplished his course, who is a preserver of the Dhamma, the Discipline, and the Summaries. Face to face with that elder, I have heard and learned thus: This is the Dhamma and the Discipline, the Master's Dispensation.'

"In such a case, bhikkhus, the declaration of such a bhikkhu is neither to be received with approval nor with scorn. Without approval and without scorn, but carefully studying the sentences word by word, one should trace them in the Discourses and verify them by the Discipline. If they are neither traceable in the Discourses nor verifiable by the Discipline, one must conclude thus: 'Certainly, this is not the Blessed One's utterance; this has been misunderstood by that bhikkhu — or by that community, or by those elders, or by that elder.' In that way, bhikkhus, you should reject it. But if the sentences concerned are traceable in the Discourses and verifiable by the Discipline, then one must conclude thus: 'Certainly, this is the Blessed One's utterance; this has been well understood by that bhikkhu — or by that community, or by those elders, or by that elder.' And in that way, bhikkhus, you may accept it on the first, second, third, or fourth reference. These, bhikkhus, are the four great references for you to preserve."

If one recollects a deity with virtues of a Bodhisatta, and not that of "Robin Hood" or "Ghandi" than one can be sure being in line with the Dhamma. For how could "Robin hood-intention" ever lead into the Deva world, to a higherd mind, to leave the low realm of the petas?

. As for Sujato, since his tendenc is gain and making housholders a favour, what ever might developed is for no use in regard of liberation, simply a con artist, scammer, scam artist, after world gain and politic, using the "poor" for his purpose.

So Sujatonusati might maybe not be really useful, althought many have the same virtue and generosity, learning and discernment... just for those who might be helped, with the problem of thinking "Robin Hood" would be ever a deity and in regard of "Mayanusati" and it's binding effects.

His undertaking, which seems noble at the first glimps, in bringing all together, is by lowering the Dhamma to A-Dhamma and not lifting A-Dhamma possible to the good Dhamma. That is of no use for anyone.

So here and there, all he actually does is to divide, rather to say, that fits in its purpose, in it's ways, to Dhamma Vinaya. Picking out what is good and contuctive. Why is that? Because he is an outsider, has not penetrated the Dhamma an simply uses it for his livelihood and gain, for low politic.

This is an astonishing attack on Ajahn Sujato of Sutta Central, from someone who is claiming to be a monk himself and who appears to have already been banned from several forums.

« Last Edit: June 24, 2017, 03:05:42 am by Pixie »

Logged

May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.May they all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.May they never be deprived of true happiness devoid of any suffering.May they abide in great impartiality, free from attachment to loved ones and aversion to others.

In times past both Tantrayana and Mahayana have been found in some of the Theravada countries, but today the Buddhism of Ceylon, Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia is almost exclusively Theravada, based on the Pali Canon. The only Mahayana deity that has entered the worship of ordinary Buddhists in Theravada countries is Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. In Ceylon he is known as Natha-deva and mistaken by the majority for the Buddha yet to come, Bodhisattva Maitreya. The figure of Avalokitesvara usually is found in the shrine room near the Buddha image.

Imagining deities is taking one's focus away from practice in the here and now.

Time for me to to get on with everyday life . Have a good day, Hanzze.

_/|\_

Logged

May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.May they all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.May they never be deprived of true happiness devoid of any suffering.May they abide in great impartiality, free from attachment to loved ones and aversion to others.

Sometimes I have a chat with “God,”Who looks after this trembling worldWith so much tolerance, kindness, and care, Yet the world’s beings still tremble and quake.

The world is stinking drunk on materialism,Heartbroken with pains worse than violent death.“Living dead” hour to hour as if life is a joke Is worse than dying just once into the coffin.

Whatever they attempt, they still miss seeing the path,Too terrified of giving up and abandoning everything.It will happen only when Dhamma returns just in timeAnd the world turns towards the joy of Sri Araya’s Age

Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva with some Theravada monk friends having a picnic in the garden forest

I have some Tibetan thangkas of deities in my home, including one of Avalokitesvara (Chenrezi). However, it doesn't mean that I believe they actually exist independently of the paintings.

.

« Last Edit: June 24, 2017, 04:39:00 am by Pixie »

Logged

May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.May they all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.May they never be deprived of true happiness devoid of any suffering.May they abide in great impartiality, free from attachment to loved ones and aversion to others.